This invention relates generally to small hinged containers, for example those employed to package jewelry, pen and pencil sets, etc., and is concerned in particular with an improved mounting means for fixing the hinges relative to the container walls.
A number of hinge mounting arrangements have been developed in the past for mounting hinges on container walls. One such arrangement is illustrated in U.S. Pat. No. 3,355,088 where the hinge is attached directly to the container wall by means of sharp prongs on the hinge leaves. The prongs pierce the wall material and are then bent over to produce a mechanical interlock. A similar arrangement is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 1,626,301, although in this case the hinge leaves have perpendicular extensions attached directly to the bottom and top of the container. These types of arrangements have proven to be unsatisfactory because the prongs disfigure the exterior wall surfaces, and because the hinges tend to loosen after relatively little usage. Also, these arrangements require mechanical operations and associated equipment to insert and bend the prongs during assembly.
Another known arrangement is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 2,804,229. Here, the hinge leaf is provided with flanges and ears which cooperate in interlocked engagement with pocket-like recesses and hook members stamped out of the metallic container wall. While this type of arrangement is an improvement over those described above in that it is not likely to loosen, it still has the disadvantage of disfiguring the exterior wall surface.
Still another known arrangement is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 3,572,538. Here the hinge is attached to a hinge receiving element which is then wedged in place between inwardly protruding flanges on the container wall. The wedging is accomplished by employing additional insert members. While this arrangement does not disfigure the exterior wall surface, it is somewhat lacking in rigidity, and the need to employ additional insert members limits the ways in which the interior of the container can be decorated and used. Other similar arrangements are shown in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,128,898 and 3,782,592.
Another problem which is common to all of the arrangements referred to above is that they do not reinforce or strengthen the container wall at the hinge location. Since the container wall is subjected to torsional and bending stresses originating at the hinge location, and since portions of the container wall and associated flanges are frequently cut away and thus weakened at this location in order to accommodate the hinge pintle, this lack of reinforcement is another serious drawback.